Productive mine during 19C following W-E trending vein.
The deep, square, stone-lined engine shaft lies south of the engine house at SJ 0877 7534, with additional shafts at SJ 0881 7534, SJ 0883 7533, and a collapsed shaft at SJ 0867 7537. The unfenced New Engine Shaft at SJ 0862 7540 features an iron A-frame, once part of the pumping mechanism, emerging from the surrounding rubble. Several other collapsed or trial shafts are present throughout the site, including locations at SJ 0858 7537, SJ 0854 7536, SJ 0853 7536, SJ 0850 7537, SJ 0845 7541, and SJ 0845 7537.
The remains of a substantial incline, once used to transport ore to the dressing floors, are faintly discernible, though now largely obscured by vegetation. The incline is more clearly represented on the 1963 OS map, running from SJ 0867 7533 to SJ 0842 7544.
The Cornish Engine House at SJ 0877 7535 remains standing to its full height with an apex, constructed from dressed stone. It was originally built to house a 30-inch pumping engine, as referenced in the Mining Journal (1871). The three-story structure remains well-preserved, with the cylinder base still visible in the bottom chamber. Nearby, the remnants of a square chimney at SJ 0877 7537 survive to about one meter in height, with a base measuring approximately two to three meters square. Concrete platforms west of the New Engine Shaft at SJ 0862 7540, covering an area of 60 square meters, likely served as the foundations for the engine house and pumping system.
The processing area was situated to the southwest of a house named Pennant View, near the end of the incline and old adit level at SJ 0845 7544. Further west, beyond the old A55, the crusher house remains intact, with a preserved millstone-type crushing wheel. The concrete platforms at SJ 0860 7540 mark the bases of the barytes mill and jigs, with visible machinery and mounting bolts still in place. At the north-eastern corner, a raised platform holds three circular concrete structures, each about 1.25 meters in diameter and reinforced with iron hoops. A cast-iron air receiver remains in situ at the front of these features. Additionally, a rectangular concrete cistern at SJ 0857 7537, measuring approximately five by four meters and 1.65 meters deep, was part of the 20th-century barytes plant, which used roasting to separate barytes from zinc ore.
Other notable features include the stone-built cottage at SJ 0882 7537, which historically served as the mine office.
Mining operations in this area date back to at least the early 18th century. By the 19th century, the mine had become a significant producer of lead, silver, and barytes, employing a substantial workforce (Burt et al., 1992). The workings followed an east-to-west running vein, with various shafts and infrastructure supporting extraction efforts.
The mine ceased operations in 1891 but was briefly reopened in 1913 to extract barium minerals before being permanently abandoned in 1920.
bats
External Links
Publications (6)
- (1922); BGS - Mineral Resources of GB (c1920s) Vol II - Barytes and Witherite; 136 pages
- (1922); BGS - Mineral Resources of GB (c1920s) Vol XXIII - Lead & Zinc: Pre-Carboniferous Shropshire & North Wales; 111 pages
- Archer, A. A. (1959); Distribution of Non-Ferrous Ores in the Lower Palaeozoic Rocks of North Wales, The
- Earthworks Archaeology (1999); Reclamation Works at Pennant Mine Country Park, Rhuallt, near St. Asaph, Denbighshire
- JNCC (2010); Mineralization of England and Wales; pp. 339-342
- Williams, C. J. & Bick, D. (1992); List of metalliferous mine sites of industrial archaeological importance